...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead

Austin, TX post-hardcore enthusiasts …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead have always approached their music in a Deftones-y kind of way, exploring sonic landscapes as if At the Drive-In were hired as Tears for Fears' backing band. If that's the case, then Lost Songs may be their Songs from the Big Chair. Opening with the "Shout"-inspired polyrhythms of "Open Doors," chief songwriters Conrad Keely and Jason Reece take listeners on one of the more complex recordings from the band in recent years. At times, there are glimmers of the oddly pop-punk meets Rites of Spring noise that occupied the oh-so-terrible So Divided, like the straight-ahead rock of "Pinhole Cameras," but, overall, Trail of Dead employ the loud-louder-loudest songwriting method from the epic Source Tags and Codes. "Up to Infinity" could very well be a long lost Guy Picciotto B-side from The Argument, while "Catatonic" has the guitar acrobatics and devil-may-care gallop that British rockers Muse always aim for. It looks like there may be some wind left in this crew's sails after all.